One Hundred Little Pieces of Us
by Dawnstep
Summary: 100 Themes Challenge drabbles; updated sporadically. 10 - Opportunity. But at least they'd had the oppurtunity to know each other.
1. Introduction

He still didn't like this idea very much.

Well, okay, that wasn't _entirely _true. He'd very much agreed to the idea of having a party to celebrate… well, everything that had happened recently. Technically, this was to celebrate the inauguration (which was tomorrow) of the seventh Hokage, one Uzumaki Naruto, no less. But it was also- and everybody knew it- to celebrate the return of Uchiha Sasuke. Yes, he was technically still a prisoner of Konohagakure, but what _mattered _was the fact that he was home- finally, finally home- and had every intention of staying. Also, the death of Madara-and Danzo- was certainly cause for celebration.

…but be that as it may… when the hell did "party" become "masquerade ball"?

Sighing gently to himself, he realized he knew the answer to that question: the instant he'd agreed to let Sakura and Ino (and pretty much every kunoichi in the frickin' village) organize the thing. Never a good idea to let (overjoyed, proud of "our little Naruto-kun", mother-henning, and most definitely hormonal) teenage girls (well, and crazy Jounin… but it's pretty much the same thing) plan a party. And it's an even worse idea to not strangle them for somehow letting Gai in on the damn thing.

Grumbling under his breath, he straightened the mask on his face while glancing around, trying to determine if he'd sufficiently escaped the squeeing girls who'd taken it upon themselves to make sure he was never without a dance partner. He'd earlier tried to convince Sakura that, seeing as he was the guest of honor or whatever romantic term they'd come up with for him, he shouldn't wear a mask, so that everyone could recognize him. She'd simply rolled her eyes and told him to make the mask recognizable if that was what he wanted, but he _wasn't_ getting out of wearing it. It was, as he'd just said, technically his party, so he was _not_ to "ruin the mood", as she'd put it. He was now wishing he hadn't followed that particular bit of advice- maybe it was the orange and cyan coloration, or maybe the kitsune-like whiskers, three to each side, but it had made him instantly recognizable and, as such, instantly a target for the fangirls he'd picked up ever since it was confirmed he would be Hokage (read: since he'd instantly become the most eligible bachelor in the entire village, but status at least.)

Leaning up against the tree he'd found, he smiled gently. At least it looked like everyone was having a good time. Sakura and… was that _Gaara, _of all people?... were dancing off to one side of the dance floor, seemingly lost to the world- it was a slow song- and a girl with long, dark purple hair- Hinata?- and some guy with what looked like the image of a pair of sunglasses on his mask, giving the illusion he was wearing them… Shino, probably… were likewise twirling gently around each other. In fact, it looked like he was about the only one of his friends without a dance partner- even Sasuke (he knew it was him because he'd watched the pale teen make his mask: a simple, concealing black thing with a red rim around the eye slits) had found a partner- Neji, if he wasn't very much mistaken.

Then he realized that one person out of all his friends was missing. A surprise- how on Earth hadn't one of the many available girls fallen for him yet? Then Naruto realized he had yet to see him himself… so maybe he just wasn't recognizing the mask? No, that wasn't it; there was simply a definite lack of Inuzuka at this party. Hmm.

He was so utterly confused by this- Kiba had definitely said he was coming!- that he didn't even notice the presence at his side until the person, their face (and, subsequently, mask) cast into shadow, spoke up.

"Hello there."

He jumped. Turning slowly to face the sudden appearance, he inwardly berated himself for not noticing them immediately- he was a ninja, dammit! More than that, in just a few short days he was going to be the freaking Hokage of Konohagakure! How the hell did he not notice? And then what had been said- or rather, the voice saying it- hit home.

_That voice…_ he thought, surprised. _I… I know that voice. But it's… too… too low? Too deep? Too husky? Too… _A little voice in the back of his mind decided that this would be a good time to give its two cents.

Too sexy. And too seductive. And much, much too… attractive. This voice should be familiar…

The boy- for the voice was most definitely male, and most definitely young, or rather approximately his age, should he be forced to hazard a guess- chuckled, the sound warm and smooth. He took one step closer, his step even and confident, and with that simple movement his scent washed over Naruto. It was woodsy, warm, and somehow… animalistic…?

With that simple thought, the realization hit him.

But… no. There was just… no way! There was absolutely no way that this... this… well, that this sexy, warm, confident person could be… could be…

"Kiba?" he whispered, his eyes widening, though he knew it wasn't visible behind his kitsune mask.

He chuckled again, sending shivers down Naruto's spine. Stirring the suddenly still, hot air, he gently pressed a finger to his lips (or rather, where his lips would be were he not wearing a mask). "Shh," he murmured in a tone so seductive it should be made illegal. "Maybe, maybe not. What matters now, though, is the fact that there is one very partnerless Hokage standing before me… and after all, a shinobi must do his duty to his village- and village leader- ne? Come on," he added softly, extending a hand invitingly. "For now, I'm just going to introduce myself as your dance partner."

Naruto stared for a moment, his mind blank. Then, slowly, a smile slid onto his face, and he hesitantly gripped the warm hand offered to him. "All right, then," he said, squeezing the hand gently. "I can deal with that… for now."

-x-x-x-x-

Ta-daaa! So I'm sure some of you must be ready to stab me through right now for not updating my other stories, and instead starting something new… and so I must tell you that I am once again suffering from that terrible bane unto the existence of us authors: writer's block. So this time, instead of taking a 'writing vacation', I'll be trying a different strategy: a prompt challenge!

I'll be using the 100 Themes Writing Challenge by darknessversuslight on DeviantArt (if you Google '100 themes writing challenge' it should be at or near the top, that's how I found it), and I'll at least attempt at updating with a drabble everyday in the hope that it will, at the very least, get me back into the writing groove.

Now, about the pairings. Most of these will probably end up being NaruKiba just because that's my current pairing obsession, but there will also most likely end up being some KakaIru and a fair amount of SasuNaru at the very least, and then on top of that potentially some NaruHina or NaruSaku. So I'm just listing it as having Naruto for the 'characters' stat. xD Oh, yeah, and the average rating will be teen but that may go up or (far more likely) down in some drabbles, totally dependent on the prompt and my mood that day. However, be warned (or be very happy), there will be no lemons/smut/whatever you want to call it.

Er, yeah. Please drop me a review, I'd love to know what you though! :3 'Cha!

-Dawnstep


	2. Complicated

It's really a situation worthy of a soap opera.

It started out a hell of a lot more simple, I guess. He liked Sakura, who liked Sasuke, and I liked Hinata who liked him. It wasn't particularly serious- notice I use the schoolyard term of "like" as opposed to "love". Because we were kids- just kids. Schoolyard romance, puppy love, all that crap.

But then he had the _audacity _to fall in love- actual _love_- with that… that… that cold-hearted, stony, emo, village-deserting (although at the time we didn't know that) son of a bitch. Uchiha Sasuke… bleh. And then, of course, I had to fall in love too.

With him.

And then Sakura was in love with him too, but also apparently had a crush on Sai, just like Ino, and Sasuke had that redheaded chick- Karen? No, Karin, that was her name- Sasuke had Karin and the freaky dude with the teeth, Sui-something, and I couldn't help but wonder if, just maybe, I was reading him right- or rather, not reading him wrong- and Naruto- sweet, gentle, kind, fiery, protective, clumsy, awkward, oblivious, adorable Naruto- was maybe, just maybe, attracted to me too. Maybe, for once in my life, the person I was in love with could even love me back.

And then he nearly got killed and Hinata confessed to him and SHE nearly died but Sakura saved her and then he ran off to try to save Sasuke (again) and for some reason, Sakura wanted ME to go with her to find him and I had to sit there and watch her confess to him as an attempt to get him back home so she could kill Sasuke- not that I didn't want the bastard dead, but could she have not toyed with his heart to do it? My poor Naruto doesn't deserve that- and I was confused, damn confused, because what the hell was I supposed to do after _that?_ What if I told him how I felt and he said _I_ was lying to myself? I wouldn't be able to take it! So I didn't even try.

And now he's about to reach the thing he's dreamed of as far back as anyone can remember: his inauguration to Hokage is in three short hours. The war is over, everybody's okay, blah, blah, blah- all I want to know is how the _hell_ I'm going to stand up to- and best in order to gain Naruto's heart- the person he risked his life for repeatedly, including coming so close to death that he still can't walk on his own, almost two months later, and… and… and _loves, _dammit, loves enough that he almost succeeded in killing himself in order to bring this beloved person home after repeatedly being betrayed, rejected, made fun of, and narrowly escaping death at his hands?

All I know is that it's complicated.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Yaaaay! Numba two :3 As you can see, KibaNaru versus SasuNaru, from Kiba's perspective. It's not really connected to the last one… it could be if you want it to be, I suppose, but I wasn't intending them to connect when I wrote this. So.

Ehehehe :) Anyway, once again, drop me a review for reviews=love! 'Cha!

-Dawnstep


	3. Making History

You've changed the world, you know.

Think about that for a second.

Without you… how many things wouldn't have happened?

Even from the very, very beginning of your life, you've made this a better world. Because if you hadn't been there, what on Earth would have been done about the Kyuubi?

And then there was that first mission your team went on, to Land of Waves. Had you not been there… what would the outcome have been? I'm positive, at least, that that little boy… what was his name again? Inari?... wouldn't have turned out the way he did, and then he wouldn't have come to Konoha to help rebuild, you know. And not only that, but how many additional lives would have been lost had you not changed the little kid?

And now let's fast-forward to the Chunnin exams. Firstly, Neji Hyuugya would almost certainly not be who he is today if not for your battle. And then, of course, there's me.

Do you think there's any chance that, had I never met you, I'd still have become the Kazekage I am today?

No, of course not, and I wouldn't be the same person I am today either. I would be cold still, cruel and bloodthirsty and lonely and friendless. But you changed that… you changed _me._

And now let's move ahead to the present. Do you know how much more damage Konoha would have sustained if not for your battle against Pain- or should I say Nagato? And almost certainly he would not have revived those who were killed. For instance, your sensei, Hatake-san, would most certainly be dead still.

So you see? Without you, how much more pain and sorrow and war would there have been? How much more blood would have been spilled? How many people, me included, would still be locked away from the world? How much worse off would we be, as shinobi?

And how much less love would there be in my heart? You warmed me enough that I actually fell in love, you know. What? Just because I'm not very good at showing my emotions… I still love you, Naruto.

That's one more thing you've certainly done to make the world better.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Yeah, GaaNaru this time… it snuck up on me, what can I say? :P Eh. I'm not too happy with the ending, but oh well. Please review! :D


	4. Rivalry

Dear Sasuke,

Well, obviously, you're never going to read this, because I won't send it, and even if I wanted to I couldn't because, you know, you're a freaking missing nin. But even though you'll never read this, I need to say it.

He's mine, you. Keep your _filthy, _snakepedo-loving, missing nin, village-deserting, heartbreaking hands _off_ of him! Do you have _any_ idea what you do to him? I'll admit to… well… it's not _stalking_, per se, but… I sometimes hang around outside his window at night, okay? It's my way of asking if he's all right. And you know what? Do you have any _frigging_ idea how many nights he cried himself to sleep over you? No, of course you don't. You couldn't care less, could you, you stone-cold, arrogant sonuvabitch, and you absolutely don't care that he is _in love with you._

Which, by the way, makes you my rival. And I don't intend to lose.

Of course, that's not to say I don't have rivals more… close at hand, too- I mean, I'm no idiot, I've seen the way Sai looks at him, and the Kazekage, although that kinda gets off the "close" track. And then, of course, there's Hinata. Sweet, shy, lovable Hinata- one of my best friends ever. She's still hoping, and still trying, and I know that, if I do 'win', it'll break her heart, and I don't pretend not to feel bad about that. Hell, it makes me feel terrible just _writing_ it, but I also can't just… I'm in love with him, Uchiha, and even the thought of breaking Hinata's heart can't dull that feeling. I feel horrible thinking of her as a rival, too, but she is, and I just… can't help it, okay? I can't help it, because he's… he's just so… he's brave, and funny, and bright, and bubbly, and happy, and kind of an idiot, and he laughs a lot, even though he's gone through so damn much pain that it hurts just to think about it, and he's just… _Naruto._ And nothing- no one- will _ever_ take that away from me if I can help it. And that includes you. You wanna know why I agreed with Sakura so easily when she told us she was going to kill you? You're hurting him. The longer you're alive, the more it hurts him. True, at first you being dead will hurt him too, but then… well, I have plans, emo boy, about how to make him forget how much it hurts.

So keep your mitts off _my_ Naruto.

-Kiba


	5. Unbreakable

I had thought it was a certain thing. I was positive I had a sure, indestructible grip on myself, leaving no room for anything other than missions, battles, orders, and techniques.

And then one day I walked into the mission room and my world snapped in half.

Being the elite shinobi that I am, I didn't stand and gawk in the doorway; I still, somehow, had the presence of mind to keep moving, heading for one of the lines of people crowded in front of the desks. I whipped out my Icha Icha, stood, and pretended to read… all the while covertly staring over the top of the orange book at the person who had so distracted me.

I mean, I'd certainly seen him around before, heard of him, even turned in mission reports to him (some of which he demanded I redo). But I'd never really… well, I handed really _noticed_ him. I hadn't noticed the way his hair was precisely the color of black coffee. I hadn't noticed how his voice was warm and smooth and rich. I hadn't noticed how, when he let his guard down, as he had now while taking a mission report from a team apparently comprised of former students, his smile was bright and his eyes were tender and kind and his laugh was free and his face was open and cheerful and… and he was beautiful.

That admission greatly surprised me. Yes, I'd been attracted to men before, and yes, I'd called people beautiful before, but the two had never meshed together. Now, though, there was no doubt that that was the only way my mind would describe the man: beautiful.

Hmm. This could be interesting.

.x.x.x.x.

GAAAH! Gomen, gomen, gomen, I REALLY meant to update yesterday! But I was having a hard time with this prompt and I had a bunch of other stuff to do and I just… I never got around to it. And now that I have, I'm not overly pleased with it… oh well. Yay for KakaIru. Review?


	6. Obsession

It was sick and twisted. That was the inevitable truth, but I couldn't help the way I was. Sighing, I flopped back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling with unseeing eyes. Somehow I had to sleep; I knew I was at the end of my metaphorical rope, nearly collapsing sometimes with exhaustion (but not where my… comrades could see me, of course; I showed no outward signs of anything. It was incredibly important to keep up my perfect façade.) However, I couldn't find even that simplest of respites. I tossed and turned silently, my eyes staring wide into the darkened rooms, the obsidian wide and barely alluding to the small pupils. My breath was ragged, but quiet, and after a while I simply rolled over onto my back and stared up at the ceiling, tortured once more by the images that I could not seem to lock out of my head: him, always _him,_ happy and sad and pained and surprised- like that one, accidental day, the day I know I fell in love and sometimes dared to hope he did too, the day when some kid- I can't even remember who it was anymore- did an accidental thing and knocked into him, sending him crashing forward… directly into me.

I squeezed my eyes shut. No, no, I couldn't think of that. I had more important things to do than agonize over something that was probably never possible in the first place- I needed sleep, I needed my strength, I had things to accomplish. But the arguments sounded week even in the confines of my own mind, and I groaned, screwing my eyes shut even tighter.

Suddenly there was the unmistakable sound of the door banging open. I immediately sat up, my eyes flying open, expecting to see Karin or perhaps Suigetsu or Jyuugo, looking panicked or perhaps just amused if it was Suigetsu. Instead, what I saw hitched my breath in my throat, and despite all my control and my cold face all I could do was stare numbly in shock.

It seemed that flinging the door open had taken the last of his strength, and he collapsed onto the floor, dripping copious amounts of blood with loud, wet splats. His breathing was labored and raspy, his eyes wavering with a clear display of failing strength. And then he turned those quivering blue orbs up and stared into my shocked gaze, and a smile ghosted onto his lips, made much paler than they should have been by blood loss.

"Sa…su…ke…" he whispered, and then he coughed, a huge glob of blood hitting the floor with a terrible splatter.

I leapt from the bed to stand before him but hesitated, unsure of what to do. On the one hand, my colder side was screeching that this was my enemy-even if that part was my fault- and he was clearly much, much to close to death to last more than another few minutes. But on the other hand, most of my being was roaring that this was _Naruto, _my friend, my almost-brother, my… my secret forbidden love and it was my own fault that the term 'enemy' now fit him as well, and he was dying, and looked beyond saving and so it was okay, it was safe, I could go and hold him and maybe tell him some of the things that I'd needed to say for so long.

And so I did.

I bent down, a motion so quick that even with his shinobi eyes I doubted he could track it- hell, _I_ couldn't even watch it, not without the Sharingan anyway. Carefully, I reached out a hand to touch his shoulder, where a good deal of the blood seemed to be coming from. He hissed, and I yanked my hand back before realizing that this was a sound of pain as compared to disgust that I was touching him. So I gently stretched the hand back out, then hesitated and, instead of touching his shoulder again I gathered him as gently as possible into my arms.

"Naruto," I whispered, my eyes still wide with shock.

"Teme," he greeted, his small smile still firmly in place. Then he chuckled, a hoarse, dead sound that caused him to spit up yet more blood- all over my bare chest, not that I cared. "Bit more caring once I'm nearly dead, eh?"

"Naruto," I repeated, and my cold side snorted in disgust when my voice cracked. "Naruto, no. No. No, don't… Naruto, don't…!"

"Don't what, teme? I haven't done anything to you. What are you going on about?"

"No, no, no!" I whimpered, my eyes searching his feeble form for the exact source of the injury. "No- no, don't! Don't leave me, don't, you can't-! Oh, God, NO! Naruto… no, no, you _didn't!"_

I had found the injury: there was a kunai-sized hole in his chest, and another in his shoulder, and there were read lines crisscrossing all over his arms and wrists… but no, no, I did _not_ want my mind to work, I didn't _want_ to figure this out, I didn't…!

My terrible, half-formed suspicions were simply and completely confirmed when he slowly reached into his jacket and pulled out a blade, the kunai still ripe with freshly-spilled blood. With another ghostly chuckle, he allowed the thing to drop to the floor with a clatter that nearly stopped my heart.

No.

No.

Nonononono.

He hadn't… had he?

No… no, he had.

Naruto Uzumaki, ramen-lover, dobe, urusatonkachi, Konoha's Number One Hyperactive Knuckle-Headed Ninja, apprentice to the sage Jiraiya, and future hokage, had…

He laughed openly now, the sound bitter and cold, not like him at all. "Surprised, teme?"

I simply choked, any words I might have had the inkling to say being swallowed and frozen as the full nature of what he had done hit me. And then I stopped to consider the 'why'.

The revelation must have shown on my face, because he laughed again as he looked up at me. "Exactly. I see you understand it easily. You surely didn't think what you did would be without repercussions, did you… Sasuke?"

_No. No, you didn't do this, not because of me- it isn't my fault! It's not, it's not, it's not!_

"Oh, come on… surely you can accept responsibility? After all, you _left_ me."

_No, that was _my_ choice! I had to, I had to, can't you understand, I had to get stronger…!_

"You left me all alone. I loved you, and you left me."

_You… what? No! No, I didn't know, I didn't… please…_

"Oh, you knew. What other conclusion could you have come to? You saw how much pain it caused me when you left- I was even more hurt then Sakura, I daresay. What on Earth did you say to delude yourself that it wasn't love?"

_No… I… N-no, I didn't… It wasn't… Was it? I mean, you didn't… We didn't… I…_

A harsh laugh slipped past dying lips. "You're confused by that, hmm? Well, don't worry- there isn't much time left for me, and then you've got the rest of your days to figure out the answer." Slowly, he reached up to pat my cheek condescendingly, his eyes still glittering with dark humor.

I watched with detached interest as an odd droplet of liquid splashed onto his chest, soaking into the already-wet patch of bloodstained material. I wondered momentarily where it had appeared from, and it took me a moment to realize that my eyes were burning and wet. That surprised me; all this time, and he could still break through my cold mask as though it were nothing. I swallowed hard, terrified.

My thoughts were a whirlwind as the two of us sat in silence, his labored breathing the only thing to break the calm. I couldn't find a single coherent thought in the mush of spinning emotions and reactions and dreams.

I was barely aware of the fact that his… condition… was deteriorating until he gave a rough gasp and spasmed in pain, his eyes wide but also dull, the light fading. "I guess this is it, huh, teme?" he whispered, more to himself than me.

_No…_

Blue eyes flickered up to mine for quite possibly the last time and a dim smile played out across his face. "Take care of Sakura for me."

_No…!_

His eyelids slid down to cover the dimming orbs as he gasped in another breath, clenching his fists in pain.

_No!_

"Naruto…?"

Silence.

_No, no, no!_

"Naruto!"

_Nonononono!_

"NARUTO!"

_NONONONONONONO…!_

With a gasp, I shot upright, my chest heaving and my eyes darting about my dark room even as his name bubbled once more from my lips. It took a few moments of gasped breath and frightened searching for me to calm down enough to realize that he wasn't there, that it had been a dream, that he hadn't ever burst through my door bleeding and on the edge of death.

Flopping back down on the covers, I sighed.

This obsession of mine was getting out of hand.

-x-x-x-x-

Er, yeah, please ignore Sasuke's utter OOC-ness. ^.^'' Yeah, um, I had a little trouble with it there near the end so I apologize if it's a bit awkward… also, my computer barfed out its brains there for a couple days and it's only thanks to my super-fantabulously-amazing Father of Doom that it's fixed now, so please excuse the lack of update. :3 Well, as always, thanks for reading and please review~!


	7. Eternity

It is almost midnight, but they are both, of course, still awake, spooned up together in their comfortable and familiar bed with the homemade quilt and the squishy mattress. They can't really be anything _but_ awake, considering that tonight is, of all nights, one of the most confusing, because it represents both a source of great joy and a cause of great pain.

Finally- for they have been silent for a very long time now, choosing to simply enjoy each other's company and use it as a shield against the pain rather than make conversation- he breaks the stillness.

"Kakashi?"

The response is immediate, instinctual, unchallengeable.

"Yes, Ruka-love?"

He smiles softly at the endearment, tan skin washed pale by the moonlight glistening from the window. But then, as quick as it came, the smile is gone, and he is serious and pensive once again.

"Why me?"

His voice is satin-smooth but vulnerable, confident but infinitesimally small, and it takes simply Kakashi's breath away, such that it takes him much longer than it should to process the question. When he does, though, he frowns, his brows knitting over mismatched eyes as he tries to discern the meaning of the inquiry.

In the end, though, he succumbs to confusion.

"What?"

Iruka sighs, his breath ghosting out over the skin of Kakashi's arm, which is currently pillowing his head.

"Why me, Kakashi? I'm nothing special, you know."

Suddenly it is crystal-clear, and Kakashi is almost- almost- exasperated. He should've known, really; Iruka always got sensitive on this day.

It is, after all, the anniversary of a great tragedy. Really, everyone was a bit emotional right about now (probably why Sasuke had dragged Naruto in the general direction of the Uchiha complex midway through the blonde's own birthday celebration earlier on in the evening.)

"Ruka," he says softly, shifting slightly so that he can more fully cradle Iruka to his chest. "You _are_ something special, I promise. You're warm, and thoughtful, and amazing the the kids, and you can think your way out of any situation- and don't you even try to say that 'any good shinobi can to that'," he adds upon feeling, more than seeing, Iruka open his mouth to protest. "If you don't get what I'm saying, imagine any of us- other than you, of course- in any sort of domestic emergency. When Iruka can't help but suppress a spurt of laughter, he presses onward.

"You're also funny, Ru, and you can deal with all us crazy Jounin and our crappy mission reports, and you know more about… well, everything that just about everyone else I know, including myself, and you can deal with Naruto, and… and I could sit here and list your good qualities all night, but there are too many, so I won't. Instead, I'll just tell you that you're fantastic, and amazing, and incredible, and you're being silly, and I love you."

Iruka smiles hesitantly, his heart slowly filling to the brim with the particular warm, fuzzy feelings only Kakashi can give him. "Really?"

"Really, Ruka. Now and for eternity."

-x-x-x-x-x-

Fluuuuuuuuff. :3

Yeah, so, um… sincere apologies for the update gap. Crap happened, you all know how it is, I'm sure. Life just sort piled up for a few months… but, anyway, I'm back now.

So! This is my first KakaIru I've ever written, I believe. It's long been one of my favorite pairings, so I'm glad to have finally written some. c:

Well, anyway.

Review?

'Cha!

-Dawny


	8. Gateway

He felt like he was standing on a cliff.

This was it, really. This was the last time he'd ever truly be as he was now, should he continue this course of action.

But then, what was there, he supposed, were he to stay, except denial, fighting, and the fearwaitingpain of watching those he loved (though, of course, he'd never admit that) get hurt?

So Sasuke made the only choice he could see left anymore.

He left.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Yeah… far shorter than the rest, but hopefully clear and effective.

Review?

'Cha!

-Dawny


	9. Death

It was something that followed them everywhere.

Considering, of course, their occupation, there was no way that it couldn't. And, as it followed them, it had a habit of pressing in, heavily and on all sides, until it was all they could think of and all they could comprehend and they choked on it.

And, surely, it tracked all of them.

But it had always been particularly keen on Gaara.

There was no denying it: it clung to every millimeter of him- his porcelain skin, his fiery hair, his wide, unblinking eyes- like a tightly-fitting smoke, never too far from wherever he was. When he walked, it either moved with him like a second skin or followed after like a cloud of cloying, drowning ash.

It was this that, though they were rarely consciously aware of it, frightened most people away. And, lonely as he was, in a way this comforted him.

At least he knew he'd always have Death.

-x-x-x-x-x-

There are quick to type, now that I have a few written out on paper.

Review?

'Cha!

-Dawny


	10. Opportunities

One of the most sought-after yet least tangible and attainable things in the world is an opportunity.

This was something both Sasuke and Naruto knew all too well.

From an early age- Naruto, of course, even earlier than Sasuke- they had been denied the opportunity to know their families. Both, then, hand been denied too the opportunity to be was is considered normal, and, further, that to have friends among those their age, at least for a very long while.

But, Sasuke thought as he felt his strength drain away and as he saw- distantly, as though in a dream- the wide, startled blue eyes of the teammate he'd somehow grown to care for, at least they'd had the opportunity to know each other.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Review?

-Dawny


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